Splashtop makes some great remote desktop software. I like Splashtop. So please friends, readers, and developers over at Splashtop, keep in mind my love for the company as a whole when I say the following sentence: Charging users $25 to try out Windows 8 on an Android tablet is an absurd, opportunistic, rip off of an idea. Most disappointingly, it will work for a small minority of users. And their money spends just the same as any other.

The madness begins when you discover that the $25 entry fee to the Windows 8 tablet show is a steep discount. The app will eventually climb up to $50. Fifty. Five, and then a zero before we reach the decimal point. At $25, this app is already two and a half times more expensive than the company's second-cheapest apps, which all come in at $9.99 right now (some are, admittedly, on sale). The full price is five times more expensive than any other product right now. You could buy tickets to the Avengers for three to four of your friends, or tickets to What To Expect When You're Expecting for three to four of your enemies for that much money.

If you absolutely must have Windows 8 running in something resembling a tablet form factor, and money is no object, though, this app will help. However, as with other Splashtop products, this is still a BYOOS situation. You'll need a computer running the Windows 8 Release Preview. Which means, among other things, you'll already have access to most Windows 8 features. Given the price, one must justifiably ask what you get for your money. Well here's a portion of the feature list:

FEATURES:Now with Splashtop, you can enjoy native Win 8 Metro touch gestures:- Swipe from the right for the Charms menu- Swipe from the left to switch apps- Pull down from the top to close the app- Swipe slowly from the left to run two apps side-by-side- Pinch to do Semantic Zoom- And many more gestures for you to explore!

So, gestures. Which, admittedly, is nice if you want to see what a Windows 8 tablet would feel like before they're released. It's worth noting that this probably isn't very helpful for developer use. Windows RT is the version that runs on ARM processors and it's very likely that many if not all Windows 8 tablets will be utilizing the ARM architecture. So gestures is pretty much all you're getting here.

While I can't in good conscience recommend this app based on the price, you're all responsible adults, I assume. If you want to see what Windows 8 will feel like on a tablet, grab it from the widget below. Do it quickly, though, before the price jumps up to $50.

Comments

Not compatible with Nexus S! (Like that would have changed anything!) :D

craig0r

Splashtop works great, however they've always been opportunistic. Look at all the different "versions" you have to purchase to run it on various devices! Based on principle alone, I'll stick with PocketCloud.

jayray78

So, if I already have Win8 I can get a Win8 emulator? more or less. Pass. Forever.

ericl5112

If you don't have access to a Windows 8 Touch device, and you are developing an app for a Windows 8 Touch device, you could pay $25 for this, or $700+ for an actual tablet that isn't made for Windows 8 anyway.

I am hoping that a lot of you hardcore Android programmers like AP's very own Artem Russakovskii (which I spelt without Google! XD) use Linux for their application developent needs (I mean Ecplise many other IDEs/Game Engines are cross-platofrm).I know I will get hate for this but WP7 is much worse than iOS!

GazaIan

There's a reason for it, Desktop apps would only be x86 apps. RT forces everyone to use Metro, they can't use a desktop Window. Microsoft would be in deep fragmentation shit if they allowed desktop apps in the Marketplace. All they would get is a bunch of good apps with low ratings because it doesn't work on RT tablets.

RebelwithoutaClue

No worries, there are apps out there to allow any metro app to be run in a window on your desktop

Sorry, I only use Linux on all my servers, don't like the Desktop offerings of any Linux OS. I am a Windows power user and not planning to change that - too many programs I rely on are for windows, and I don't want to mess with wine and wonder of they will work.

Dandy_da_man_2k

Vista haters = old. Keep using Win 3.1 then. It's called getting with the times. Win 8 is much faster than windows 7. Much easier to use, and makes much better use of my hardware.

denbo68

What's old are the Microsoft apologists who defend every piece of crapware that comes out of Redmond.

Metro is much easier to use? Yeah every reviewer who has been using it since the first release has just raved over it. And it certainly has helped Microsoft regain its foothold in the phone market. Ok I'll stop with the sarcasm now.

If it makes you feel any better I think a better comparison for Metro is Microsoft Bob. Vista was just a terrible OS. Microsoft Bob was a UI paradigm that everyone rejected outright. Same for Metro... the warning signs are all there.

thanks but i really have no use for a comp thats why i dont keep up with it. my s2 does everything and its more powerful than my comp

Dandy_da_man_2k

My s2 doesn't play diablo 3 unfortunately. Nor does it really do much as easily as my pc does.... but each for their own. Not sure why you asked about it then said you don't need it...

fixxmyhead

Yea I'm not into diablo 3 or video games (haven't touched my ps2 in a while, yea I'm not even on the ps3 or xbox scene) I was just curious dude. I just need web browsing and videos and downloading stuff *cough*porn*cough* lol

TynanDeRosa

Nope, it'll be out in like October~

fixxmyhead

thanks

TheFirstUniverseKing

The Release Preview is out, which I'm currently running on my main laptop (and typing this post from). It's free from Microsoft, just Google it. However, the final release isn't out yet.

fixxmyhead

got it but i have no use for it. all i really need is basic web browsing and videos which my phone does thats why i dont even touch my comp

Mark Arpon Gjødvad

Get a Chromebook! :D

fixxmyhead

I almost was but why? My s2 does basically EVERYTHING I need it to do. I don't want to spend another 400$ on another device. Hdmi cable and I'm set

Mark Arpon Gjødvad

I have the S2 also, but never will I let it replace my laptop! The small screen and keyboard just isn't that great for long internet sessions.

And a Chromebook sounds like it would fit your needs perfectly. :D Or you could also just wait until Chromebooks get cheaper. :)

fixxmyhead

I almost was gonna get one. Hdmi cable and I'm set but I still need a capable TV :-

ericl5112

I may get it. I think it would be quite useful for a developer. Also:

"it's very likely that many if not all Windows 8 tablets will be utilizing the ARM architecture"

Computex would disagree with you there. Besides, the apps on windows 8 metro are pretty high level. The architecture shouldn't matter, you're writing to an interpreter anyway. Possible exception is games.

I thought that the applications would be programmed in C++ (with Visual Studio IDE) and would have to be recompiled for different architectures.

Android I think is an exception because it uses a Java VM (Dalvik).

ericl5112

You can write metro apps in a lot of languages, including the HTML5/CSS/Javascript combo. There are some languages that will have to be recompiled on different architecures, but even then, very few of them are going to be messing with the silicon in ways that means a test on an x86 device isn't enough for arm.

Also, I'm not sure C++ is an option, is it? I thought it was C#, Silverlight, and .NET. Never programed for an MS OS before, so I could be wrong there. This will be my first.

From an info-slide that was shown almost a year ago, I know regular C++ is still going to be around (obviously they aren't taking it away), but it is rumored that it won't be compatible with Metro (which means it's still viable as a library/component, it just can't be called directly for Live Tiles or in the UI of an app that leverages the Metro interface). I still haven't seen confirmation, but rumors have suggested the ARM version of Windows 8 will _only_ support Metro and doesn't offer the "full" range of runtimes. If that rumor is true, native C++ isn't going to have a very large role on Windows 8 RT. I have heard that native code will not be permitted at all in the Windows Store, which is probably related to sandboxing and testing issues. Also worth noting, it has been confirmed that recompilation will be required for some apps to run on both architectures (I think this has more to do with how it's compiled in the first place, as a first-pass compile should only go to byte codes, nothing native, which leaves apps to rely on the Jitter at runtime). I am attending a conference in a couple of weeks where I'll find out more on this.

Just to be complete... There is C++ for .Net, but it's not in common use anymore. It's really just there as a shim for people who are more comfortable with C++ syntax and somehow incapable of making the 1% adjustment over to C#. It's still using the same libraries and throws out several C++ conventions, the code just looks a tiny bit different. The same is true of Visual Basic.Net, unfortunately people have been far more resistent in giving up that catastrophe.

r3drox

Well, if im not wrong, Microsoft has to get a cut in licensing fees for running their OS. Thus, the steep pricing. Seems reasonable to me.

Oliver Petruzel

In this case, and even once final Win8 is released, Splashtop is not required to pay for a separate Win8 license because all you are actually doing is remote connecting to a copy of Win8 that you already own and operate on the PC you're connecting to. This is really no different than any other VNC or remote login application that streams your remote PC's screen -- except that this one just so happens to (allegedly) work with Win8's gesture controls.

CeluGeek

I'm not really interested in making my Android tablet feel like Windows 8. Instead, now that Microsoft wants to turn PC's into oversized tablets, I'd rather run Android on my PC (dual-booting with Windows 7). Now that would be something!

Before you want to dualboot CeluGeek try Android x86 4.0 on VirtualBox first. Android is a beautiful OS (hence why I am here on AP) but it feels awkward and out of place on a desktop w/ mouse and keyboard environment. Here are the links incase you are lazy (like me! XD):

It might be possible to get around this by running the normal SplashTop in Win7 then using a virtual machine to run Win 8.... So you'd be able to use win8 with your current install of Win7 not paying these crooks 25 bucks

I find virtual machines inefficient and only use them when I want to test an OS without messing around with hard drive partiions. I am currently dualbooting my sister's old HP Compaq with Windows 8 Release Preview and Ubuntu 12.04 (both 32-bit) and that's as close as I want to be for now!

Dandy_da_man_2k

Its a non issue on recent hardware with lots of ram. i7 with 16gb ram means vm's run just as well as the host os.

There's no way I would spend £16 on an app like this. Maybe £10 maximum if I thought this looked good.

GazaIan

Splashtop will be happy to know I pirated this app (on iPad), for the lulz.

babyfacemagee

Most Windows 8 Tablets on release of the OS will actually be the full x86 version, not Windows RT. Windows RT tablets aren't really expected to come out in full force until 2013. Of the 20+ Windows 8 tablets expected in October at launch of Windows 8 only 1 or 2 are expected to be Windows RT devices. All the rest will be x86 versions.